Given name & surname
Carmel
“garden”·“of the fruitful orchard”
Carmel is used as a given name and a surname. Interpretations include “garden” (Hebrew) and “of the fruitful orchard” (Hebrew). These may reflect different naming traditions.
Original Hebrewכרמל
Meaning & origin
What it means
Interpretations include “garden” (Hebrew) and “of the fruitful orchard” (Hebrew). These may reflect different naming traditions.
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Hebrew.
How it developed
From Hebrew כַּרְמֶל (karmél, “vineyard of El/God”).
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1888. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Carmel through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 8,609
- 1,393 boys · 7,216 girls
- Most popular year
- 1924
- 189 babies
- 2025
- 37
- #5,004 for girls · #7,280 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +50%
- Rising fast
Boys, girls and both
The balance of boys and girls given this name has shifted over time. Recent births are 28% boys.
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 26 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 5,004 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 54.7% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 155 in 1962. It also appeared in 11 birth records for boys in 2025. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (8). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 5,664 as a first name in 2020; 1,158 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Carmel’s family of names
Carmel has an affectionate form in Carmelita. Carmel shares a linguistic root with Carmen. In English usage, Carmel has a conventional equivalent in the Spanish form Carmela.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Carmel has relatives in 5 languages. Lines run from its Hebrew roots to each of them.
Hebrewwhere Carmel comes from · 1 name
Nicknames & forms 14
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 10
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
- כרמלHebrew
- Carmencognate · Spanish
- Carminehas masculine form
- Karmelrelated form
- Carmeequivalent
- Karmenuequivalent
- Karmeleequivalent
- Armèlalmo
Show 2 moreShow fewer
See also 1
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Carmel
- Carmel MyersAmerican actress (1899–1980)
- Carmel BusuttilMaltese footballerborn 1964
- Carmel BudiardjoBritish activist (1925-2021)
- Carmel SnowIrish fashion editor1887–1961
- Carmel McCourtBritish singerborn 1958
- Carmel ShamaIsraeli politicianborn 1973
- Carmel BerksonAmerican sculptorborn 1924
- Carmel SepuloniNew Zealand politicianborn 1977
- Carmel AgiusMaltese lawyer and judge of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslaviaborn 1945
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
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If you love Carmel, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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Victory is a surname.
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